Great Central Railway – RUDDINGTON.info

Ruddington’s Railway Celebrates 125 Years

11th March 202423rd March 2024 Graham Wright

Did you realise that 2024 marks 125 years since the opening of the Great Central Railway ‘London Extension’? That included the two sections of line now preserved by heritage railway groups between Ruddington and Birstall in Leicester – which are soon to be reconnected in Loughborough, if all goes to plan. Meantime this weekend those two groups, Great Central Railway (Nottingham) and Great Central Railway (Loughborough), are holding a joint celebration for the first time, and encouraging visitors to enjoy what’s on offer at their sites. On both Saturday 16th March…

Canal Bridge Completed

7th July 20207th July 2020 Graham Wright

From Loughborough comes news that a major two-day operation at the start of this month has ‘all but’ finished the overhaul of the elegant Victorian railway bridge which spans the Grand Union Canal in the town. The relevance of this restoration for our village is that it marks another step forward for the eighteen mile heritage line vision between Ruddington and Leicester North by reconnecting the currently separate sections of tracks operated by volunteers from our own Great Central Railway – Nottingham (GCRN) and Loughborough’s Great Central Railway (GCR). Built in the…

Iconic ‘Railbus’ for Ruddington

20th January 20203rd September 2020 Graham Wright

Ruddington’s Great Central Railway (Nottingham) has revealed that the latest addition to its heritage fleet should mean it will able to run trains here all year ’round. Please see the September 2020 update below*. Currently services are operated by its volunteers only through the summer, in the lead-up to Christmas and over some other half-term holiday periods**. However, the imminent arrival of a Class 144 DMU Railcar (144003) from Porterbrook, to become preserved for heritage use, could see services increasing to 52 weekends a year. Once it’s released from mainline duties during the first…

Ruddington Restoration Dedicated to Fallen Soldiers

18th September 201718th September 2017 Graham Wright

A vintage carriage took pride of place yesterday (Sunday 17th September) at Ruddington’s Great Central Railway – in an event dedicated to over a thousand troops who died during the First World War. On display in the open for the first time was the recently restored MS&LR 6-wheel carriage – which took 16 years for five volunteers at our local Heritage Centre to return to its former glory. It was dedicated in a special ceremony by Ruddington’s Vicar, the Reverend Andrew Buchanan, to the many employees who left the Great Central Railway to…

Loan Loco Saves “Santa Specials”

10th September 201714th September 2017 Graham Wright

Youngsters can breathe a sigh of relief. Father Christmas WILL be able to spend some time in Ruddington in the run-up to the festive season after all! The popular Great Central Railway Nottingham (GCR{N}) “Santa Specials” – which are always hauled by heritage steam – were put in jeopardy at the start of this month. That’s because Stanier 8F-8274 – the only operational passenger steam locomotive based in Ruddington – suffered a serious failure. An inspection revealed the bad news of multiple cracks in the firebox and a very long and expensive journey to…

Heritage Railway Bridges the Gap

2nd September 201719th March 2021 Graham Wright

TONIGHT will see an historic moment for The Great Central Railway – the installation of a new bridge to rejoin two sections of the line divided for almost half a century. Once construction work on the reunification project is complete, this will enable trains to run all the way from Ruddington to Birstall in Leicester for the first time since 1969! Great Central Railway Nottingham {GCR(N)} is reporting that the groundworks are now finished and that contractors are due to lower the two decks of the giant structure into place over the Midland…